The family of one of Jeffrey Dahmer’s victims claimed that seeing Netflix’s recreation of the “emotional” courtroom breakdown had “retraumatized” them and that the streaming service never “notified” them of the event.
Eric Thulhu, 33, of Chicago, said his family is “pissed” over Netflix’s upcoming series Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story on Twitter.
Errol Lindsey, the cousin of Thulhu, was 19 years old when he vanished from a Milwaukee mall and went on to become Dahmer’s eleventh recorded victim. He allegedly accepted an invitation to Dahmer’s flat in exchange for a nude picture.
I realise true crime media is popular right now, but my family (the Isbell’s) are upset about this programme if you’re truly interested about the victims, Thulhu said on Twitter.
It repeatedly retraumatizes, but for what reason? How many films, TV series, or documentaries do we require?
The newest offering from Netflix premiered on Wednesday, and on October 7, the streaming behemoth will also release Conversations With a Killer: The Jeffrey Dahmer Tapes, which is famed for its real crime documentaries.
When Ross Lynch, a former Disney actor, starred in the 2017 film My Friend Dahmer, the gory tale was revived only a few years earlier.
A short Google search also turns up several more films that have been made since the dramatic case first made its way through the courts.
Thulhu went on to add that since it is “all public record, they don’t have to tell (or pay!) anybody,” and Netflix didn’t even “notify” the family of the development of the new blockbuster series.
Therefore, no one approaches them when they claim to be acting in this manner “with regard to the victims” or “honouring the dignity of the families.”
At this point, my cousins awaken every few months to a flurry of calls and texts informing them that another Dahmer programme is about to air. He said on Twitter that it was harsh.
It would be “WILD” to recreate my cousin Rita Isbell’s emotional collapse in front of the guy who tortured and killed her brother. WIIIIIILD.’
In an effort to get a response, DailyMail.com contacted Thulhu but was unable to reach Isbell.
I didn’t know the victim’s tales [before the show], and I could only assume the effect of his acts on the family and community, said Dashawn ‘Dash’ Barnes, who portrays Isbell in the series, in a Wednesday promotional post.
I think it’s crucial to share these details of the narrative, and I really hope that everyone who sees it will feel compassion for the victims and others who are impacted.
Viewers may observe how much the recreation mimics the original in the side-by-side comparison that was shared to Twitter.
Rita began by identifying herself as Lindsey’s “oldest sister” and calling Dahmer, who was seated higher in the courtroom, “Satan.”
‘I’m angry. Instead of murdering and devouring people, this is how you behave when you’re out of control,’ she said, increasing her voice. “I never want to have to see my mother go through this again,” you could say. Jeffrey, never.
When she was in the stand in 1992, she started screaming angrily at the top of her lungs and flinging her body about. It’s beyond our control.
Isbell ultimately made her way over to Dahmer and his attorney’s desk, yelling that she would “murder” him.
She said, “I could kill you, I could f**king murder you,” as soldiers seized her.
Dahmer was non-responsive during the conversation.
Isbell’s original testimony was verbatim in the Netflix recreation.
Isbell has mainly stayed unnoticed since the 1992 courtroom incident.
Since its debut, Netflix has been under fire for labelling the show as LGBT. The LGBT+ and racial minority populations made up the majority of Dahmer’s victims.
Many criticised the streaming service, which has now deleted the tag, calling the decision “gobsmacked” and “disgusting.”
In 1992, Dahmer was found guilty of the 16 murders he had been accused of committing and received 16 life sentences.
In November 1994, Christopher Scarver, another prisoner at the Columbia Correctional Institution in Portage, Wisconsin, beat him to death with a metal rod.
The Netflix series examines the errors Wisconsin police made in managing the investigation into the legendary mass killer, who gained notoriety for acts of cannibalism and necrophilia involving his victims, and retells Dahmer’s narrative from the viewpoint of his victims.
In the short-lived series, actor Evan Peters portrays Jeffrey Dahmer.
Along with the directors Paris Barclay, Carl Franklin, and Janet Mock, the show also stars performers Niecy Nash, Penelope Ann Miller, Shaun J. Brown, Colin Ford, and Richard Jenkins.